Dust-guard for air-hose couplings.



No. '759,692.- PATENTED MAY 10, 1904.

T. GAUGHAN.

DUST GUARD FOR AIR HOSE COUPLINGS.

APPLICATION mum AUG. 19, 1903. no MODEL.

UNITED STATES Eatented May 10, 1904.

THOMAS GAUGHAN, OF CLINTON, IOIVA.

DUST-GUARD FOR AIR-HOSE COUPLINGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters PatentNo. 759,692,dated May 10, '1904.

I Application filed August 19, 1908.

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, THOMAS C AUGHAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Clinton, in the county of Clinton and State of Iowa, have invented new and useful Improvements in Dust-Guards for Air-Hose Couplings, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a dust-guard for use in connection with the air-brakes of railway-cars; and its general object is to prevent dust, cinders, and other substances from entering the air-hose, especially when cars are standing in yards or when handled. in trains with the air-hose uncoupled. 7

One object of the invention is the production of a simple form of guard that can be'apw plied to the hose-coupling without the necessity of alteration in the coupling and which when applied will act automatically at all times to close the air-opening of the coupling, yet opening readily to the air-pressure both in applying the brakes and in reducing the pressure to release the brakes.

The invention primarily consists in a dustguard having valve members so arranged that one will yield to the air-pressure from one side of the guard and the other yield to the air-pressure from the other side, and thereby establish a passage through the guard that willbe normally closed.

The invention further. consists in certain novel features in the construction and arrangement of parts, all as hereinafter described, and specifically set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a face view of one of the cooperating sections ofan air-hose coupling, shown with the dustguard applied thereto; Fig. 2, a sectional view taken through the coupling on the line at w of Fig. 1; Fig. 3, an end View of the dust-guard detached and showing the position of the valve member of one side when acted on by pres sure from the other side; Fig. I, a view similar to Fig. 3, but showing theopposite valve member in the position to which it is adapted to yield to the air-pressure opposite to that ,tworof the open1ngs12 or the DELPUIJIOD mom-- which actuates the other member;-and Fig. 5': is a sectional view showing the guard in the same position as in Fig. 3.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, 1

Serial No. 170,005. (No model.)

designates one of the cooperating sections of the Well-known form of a r-hose coupling now in general use, and which may be briefly described as consisting of a single casting havmg the air-passage 2 opening outat rlght angles througha circular portion 3, presenting in a longitudinal plane a meeting or coupling .be understood, however, that the invention is 5 not limited to this. form of coupling, but equally applicable to those of a different type. Within the air-opening of the circular portion 3 there is provided an annular retaininggroove 8, winch receives the expandedportion 9 of a rubber gasket 9, which retaininggroove provides a seat 10, which is utilized in the present invention, in connection with the said gasket, to position and hold in place the improved dust-guard without the necessity of materially altering the coupling onproviding additional attaching means. The seat, 10, however, may be beveled, as shown, to receive the main circular partition member 11 of the guard, WlliClliS preferably formed beveled on its under side fora beveled seat. This form in connection with a beveled seat permits the partition ,member 11 to lie practi? cally flushed Wit .zflhe seat of the gasket and not take up the, space -.necessary for the gaskets applicatioiirwz in i The circularupartition member of the guard I is providedavith four segmental openings 12,. which are {designed to admit the passage of air from either side of the'partition member 11, but whi'chare normally closed by-lvalve disks Band 14, assembled one on each side ofthe partition member and providedeach with two segmental openings 15 and 16, respectively, the disks being so arranged that '9 5 theopenings oft-one disk will register withher, while the disk on the opposite side will portion of said disk closing the openings 12, with which the other disk is in open relation. The disk 13 ism-ade rigid with a squared stem 17, working within a square opening 17 in the partition member. The disk 14 is also provided with a central square opening, through which the stem also passes. At one end the stem is provided with a head or button 18, which forms a seat for one end of the spring 19, which is coiled about the stem, and has its other end in contact with the disk 14, the said disk being provided with a flange or collar 20 on its under side to more cifectively position the spring and form a seat for the same on the disk. The head or button 18 is removable and is formed after the manner of a nut and can be readily screwed upon the stem, thus fastening the parts together in a simple and durable manner. When applied to the coupling, the projecting stem, with its spring, extends downward within the coupling, and therefore will not interfere with the working of the coupling in any particular.

It will be readily seen that this dust-guard can be applied to hose-coupling by simply removing the air-hose gasket 9, setting guard in the opening of the coupling, and reinserting the gasket, the gasket-seat and bevel attached to the guard allowing it to lie securely in the coupling, while the pressure of the gasket holds it in place.

The operation of the guard is as follows: The pressure of the coil-spring 19 in pressing both the head 18 and the disk 14 acts at all times to keep both valve-disks 13 and 14 in close contact with the partition member 11,'

thus closing eflectually the openings 12 against the admission of dust or other matter, and this condition of the guard is the same whether the coupling is coupled or uncoupled and requires no attention whatever on the part of the trainmen. In charging the train the air passes through the openings in the disk 13 and also through the corresponding opening 12 in the partition member and comes in contact with the solid sections of the disk 14, the pressure of the air forcing the disk 14 away from the partition member and against the action of the spring, permitting the air to pass, as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 4, through the coupling-section into the trainpipe. In making a reduction of the air-pressure, as in the releasing of the brakes, the action of the guard is reversed, as the air then first passes through the openings of the disk 14 and coming in contact with the solid sections of disk 13 forces said disk away from the partition member, as indicated in Figs. 3 and 5, thus allowing the air to pass back to the engine. It will also be seen that this guard interferes in no way with the action of the brakes, as it readily opens to the air-pressure, and in this respect its use is found valuable in the event of trains parting, as the forth.

guard permits a reduction of the air-pressure, which otherwise would be undesirable.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A dust-guard for air hose couplings, comprisinga partition member provided with an opening or openings therethrough, a valve member on one side of said partition member adapted to close a portion of said opening or openings, and a valve member on the opposite side of said partition member adapted to close the portion of said opening or openings notclosed by the other valve member, whereby air-pressure will be admitted from either side of the guard, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. A dust-guard for air -hose couplings, comprising a partition member having an opening or openings therethrough, and having arranged on opposite sides a valve member having an opening or openings to register with a portion of the opening or openings of the partition member, the said valve members being so arranged as to have their openings register with the opening or openings closed by the opposite valve member, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. A dust-guard for air-hose couplings, comprising a partition member having an opening or openings therethrough, a valve member on one side of said partition member adapted to close a portion of said opening or openings, a valve member on the opposite side of said partition member, adapted to close the portion of said opening or openings not closed by the other valve member, and a spring for normally seating the valve members, substantially as and for the purpose set 4. A dust-guard for air-hose couplings, comprising a partition member provided. with an opening or openings therethrough, a valvestem slidably mounted in said partition member, a valve member carried by said stem and moving therewith, adapted to seat on one side of said partition member and close a portion of said opening or openings thereof, and a valve member slidably mounted on said stem and adapted to seat on the opposite side of the partition member and to close the portion of said opening or openings therein not closed by the other valve member, and a spring for operating the valve-stem and slidable valve member whereby to maintain the valve members normally seated, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. A dust-guard for air-hose couplings, comprising a partition member provided with an opening or openings therethrough,a valvestem slidably mounted in said partition member, having at one end a valve member movable therewith and adapted to seat on one side of the partition member and to close a portion of the opening or openings thereof, and having a spring-seat carried thereby at its other end, a valve member slidably mounted on said stem and arranged to seat on the opposite side of said partition member and to close the portion of said opening or openings not closed by the other valve member, and a spring located between said spring-seat and the adjacent valve member, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

6. A dust-guard for air-hose couplings, comprising a partition member provided with radial openings therethrough, a pair of springcontrolled valve members arranged to seat on opposite faces of the partition member, each provided with oppositely-arranged openings to register in open relation with the openings of the partition member closed by the oppo- THOMAS GAUGHAN.

Witnesses:

J. L. BOHNSON, FRANK E. MILLER. 

